Positive Press, Education, and Information on Pit Bulls.

[Dakonic]

As some of you may know I am a pit bull advocate and I live in a town that is abundant in bad, iresponsible owners. In this thread you may post positive videos about the dogs known as pit bulls or tell your stories.
First video in the mix Warning contains some Graphic images
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwI_qlq5vHs

"pit bulls" are not a breed, people will say they are a breed that comes in all sizes and colors but that is not true.
Pit bull is a generic term used to describe 3 diffrent breeds. (links have info on breeds)
American Pit Bull Terriers: http://www.ukcdogs.com/WebSite.nsf/Bree ... ember12008
American Staffordshire Terriers: http://www.akc.org/breeds/american_staf ... /index.cfm
Staffordshire Bull Terriers: http://www.akc.org/breeds/staffordshire ... /index.cfm

All of the "pit bull" breeds were bred to have no human aggression. Even dog fighters bred for 0 aggression. Anyone dog that bit or showed aggression towards a handler was killed and not bred.
A "pit bull" named Stubby is the most decorated dog of war. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant.
Info: http://www.governorsfootguard.com/stubby/
Many people say pit bulls were bred to be dog aggressive and all will fight. This is not true they were bred not to back down from a fight, or not to submit. If socialized they can be great with other dogs.
In the dog fighting buisness many pit bulls are killed because they will not fight.
A common question were I live is "Are pit bulls good around kids?"
Yes, all 3 of the breeds called "pit bulls", were called "nanny dogs" before they got all of the bad press. They are very patient with kids and because they have a high pain tolerance they one of the most child tolerant breeds if not the most.
The American Temperment Testing society tested almost all of the dog breeds. Scores:
American pit bull terriers: 85.3%
American Staffordshire Terriers: 83.0%
Staffordshire Bull Terrier: 88.0%
It may not sound like much but those are amazingly good scores.
Other common family breeds scores:
Standard Poodle: 85.0%
Labrador Retriever: 92.0% (This score has changed, they tested a couple years ago and labs has 81.9%)
Collie: 79.4% (the breed that Lassie was)
Dachshund(smooth hair): 70.2%
German Shepherd: 83.7%
Golden Retreiver: 84.6%
All three of the pit bull breeds scored as good or even better as dogs considered the best family dogs.
Common Breeds that scored the lowest:
English Foxhound: 66.7%
Tibetan Terrier: 54.5%
Saluki: 68.9%
Scottish Terrier: 63.6%
Skye Terrier: 37.5%
Lhaso Apso: 69.2%
Shetland Sheepdog: 67.4% (smaller breed that looks like a collie)
Statisitcs list: http://www.atts.org/statistics.html
If anyone has any questions on the breed or how to train them ask me and I will gladly answer.

[Dakonic]

Forgot to add I have owned 6 "pit bulls"
2 American Pit Bull Terriers
2 American Staffordshire Terriers
1 Stafforshire Terrier
1 Apbt/amstaff mix.
They are a high energy breed and require vigirous exercise. A walk won't do it for them, they don't need as much exercise as Labradors or Border Collies but just like any breed they will get bored if you don't exercise them. Boredom leads to chewing, jumping and being mischeavious.

[Dakonic]

Bite Force? Myth or facts?
Many people will tell your a pit bull has the strongest bite out of all the dogs, and they have locking jaws.
They do NOT have locking jaws or the strongest bite. A dog simply does not have to let go if it does not want to.
When tested with a German Shepherd and a Rottwieler a pit bull came out on the bottom of bite pressure scale.
Pit bull, German Shepherd, Rottwieler bite pressure video form NationalGeographic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbwMs7cjK0Y
Dutch Shepherd, Malinois, American Bulldog, Mastiff bite pressure video from NationalGeographic:
http://wow-petopia.com/html/mobs/mob_thebeast.html

Now if any of you did not watch the videos here are the scores:
Pit bull: 235
German Shepherd: 238
Rottwieler: 328
American Bulldog: 305
Malinois: 195
Dutch Shepherd: 232
Mastiff: 556

[Redith]

My serious pitbull vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9oae5lotQM

My funny pitbull vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0zRslRMVMI

[Nevar]

Aww the vids are so sad... I dont see why or how people can do this

[Dakonic]

Great videos, the last one made me laugh.

I made two one on how pit bulls really are besides what the media says.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SLrsUD8_bs
American Pit Bull Terriers and misidentification.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyrLEFir ... re=channel

[Saturo]

A friend of mine had a pitbull. Sweetest dog I knew. It was put down by the government when they moved into the town because apparently that breed was'nt allowed in densely populated areas. It had done nothing wrong.

[Dakonic]

I've heard that a lot. Someone had a pit bull in an area that they had to be muzzled. The dog had no aggression or biting history it was law for them to be muzzled in public. The dog was being walked by a friend and he started choking so the man took the muzzle off it only took a minute for the police to be all over that. They had to fight for 5 years(I think) to get the dog back. I'll go look for a link to the story.

[zedxrgal]

I've owned 3 Pit bulls. 3 Pure breds and 3 50/50 mixes. All of my dog's (including my current) have absolutely been the best dogs EVER!! I've always been a advocate for the breed.
There are NO bad dogs just bad OWNERS.
A mean dog is MADE not bred.




Another great video (some is GRAPHIC. WARNING!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yg589F0vYjw

I've had a pit bull who was my hero. This dog saved my life. It's to personal to go into details but had it not been for him I would not be here.

You'll never convince me there's a better dog breed out there.

[Rhyela]

I've never had one, but I do think they are wonderful dogs. A friend of mine has a Bull Terrier and she is an awesome, awesome dog. She's very hyper, but she's also very loving. She wants nothing more than to just cuddle up and lay all over you, giving you kisses (she was about to just burst from excitement one time so I let her lick my hair, lol).

The problem is definitely not with the dogs, but with the people who have them. They get the dog because of a reputation or a name, without understanding anything about them. Any animal you plan to own needs to be researched thoroughly to make sure it's a good match for you and your home. I don't think many people do that these days.

[Dakonic]

.

I am considering getting this as a tattoo. 1 more year and I can get one.

[Tahlian]

Isn't it the U.S. Marines that have an AmStaff as their mascot, due to the fact the dogs were brave and would stand their ground, but weren't mindlessly aggressive?

And yes, I appreciate the bull terrier breeds greatly...I am just a wise enough dog owner to know that they are not the dog breed for me. I likely couldn't provide the firmness or amount of exercise they need to be truly happy.

[Dakonic]

All of those breeds were bred to be tenacious, which most people will label as vicious. Dog fighters bred them not to submit and to always stand their ground. However this same trait make them exellent search and rescue/working dogs, they love to work and most working dogs have to be confident.

[Dakonic]

Oh and I think the marines mascot is the Enlgish Bulldog.